Methods of operating an exoskeleton for gait assistance and rehabilitation

ABSTRACT

A method of operating an exoskeleton device includes: receiving sensor information; connecting a clutch system to a pulley system in; determining whether to engage a drive train gear to the clutch system based on the sensor information; engaging the drive train gear through the clutch system when determined to engage the drive train gear; and powering a first motor to drive the drive train gear for controlling a joint or segment of exoskeleton device.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/513,507 filed Jul. 29, 2011, and the subjectmatter thereof is incorporated herein by reference thereto.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention relates generally to an exoskeleton device, and inparticular to an exoskeleton device with an actuation system.

BACKGROUND

Physical therapy is a much needed remedy for those patients who suffergreat injuries. However, the effects of clinical sessions are gradualand may not help with day-to-day activities. Wearable physical therapydevice may be used as to complement these clinical sessions. However,these wearable devices face many challenges.

Existing wearable physical therapy devices can be inflexible. Theexisting wearable physical therapy devices are not very customizable andlack personalization. Hence, the existing devices cannot be used as ageneral solution across a variety of patients and injuries. The existingwearable physical therapy devices are generally passive, and cannotreact to special situations.

Thus, a need remains for an effective device and system to facilitatephysical recovery. In view of the ever-increasing medical needs, alongwith growing competitive pressure in the manufacture of the medicaldevices for rehabilitation, it is now essential that the problemsdescribed be solved. Solutions to these problems have been long soughtbut prior developments have not taught or suggested any solutions.Accordingly, viable solutions to these problems have eluded thoseskilled in the art.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The present invention provides a method of operating an exoskeletondevice including: receiving sensor information; connecting a clutchsystem to a pulley system in; determining whether to engage a drivetrain gear to the clutch system based on the sensor information;engaging the drive train gear through the clutch system when determinedto engage the drive train gear; and powering a first motor to drive thedrive train gear for controlling a joint or segment of the exoskeletondevice. The exoskeleton device can provide gait assistance,rehabilitation of the user, or physical augmentation of the user'sabilities.

In one embodiment, the invention provides an exoskeleton device for gaitassistance and rehabilitation comprising: a skeleton joint system forproviding support and structure to the exoskeleton device; a textileover the skeleton joint system; a detachable actuation system; a pulleysystem configured to be engaged to the detachable actuation system; anda sensor system attached to the skeleton joint system.

A further embodiment of the invention includes an actuator system for anexoskeleton device comprising: a closed loop cable system attached topoints on the exoskeleton device; a pulley system connected to theclosed loop cable system; a detachable motor and gear system; and adrive shaft for engaging or disengaging the detachable motor and gearsystem to the pulley system.

Some embodiments of the invention have other aspects, elements,features, and steps in addition to or in place of what is describedabove. These potential additions and replacements are describedthroughout the rest of the specification

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective plan view of an exoskeleton system, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an example illustration of an actuation system.

FIG. 3 is an example illustration of a pulley system.

FIG. 4 is an example illustration of a clutch system.

FIG. 5 is an example of a system hardware diagram of a control system.

FIG. 6 is an example of a block diagram of a main board.

FIG. 7 is an example of a block diagram of a motor board.

FIG. 8 is an example of a block diagram of a sensor board.

FIG. 9 is an example illustration of a sensor.

FIG. 10 is an example illustration of an actuation system in accordancewith a further embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a method of operating an exoskeleton system,such as the exoskeleton system of FIG. 1, in a further embodiment of thepresent invention.

The figures depict various embodiments of the present invention forpurposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readilyrecognize from the following discussion that alternative embodiments ofthe structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed withoutdeparting from the principles of the invention described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention includes an exoskeleton for gait assistance. Theexoskeleton can have a passive locking system at joints of theexoskeleton for gait assistance, including providing mobile andstationary stability. The passive locking system at the joints can beimplemented by a clutch system, such as a pawl clutch system.

The exoskeleton can also be motorized by an actuation system. Theexoskeleton can include a sensor system for providing bio-mechanicalfeedback information to a control system. For example, the sensor systemcan determine if the user of the exoskeleton is standing up, sittingdown, walking, running, climbing a hill, falling, unstable, stable, orany combination thereof. The sensor system can accomplish this byutilizing force sensors, inertia measurement units, potentiometer, gyro,accelerometer, current sensors, temperature sensors, biofeedbacksensors, or any combination thereof. At a first setting of the controlsystem, the actuation system can allow the user to walk, run, jump, ormove freely and provide gait assistance to the user's movement pattern.At a second setting of the control system, the actuation system canprevent users from making movements that may hurt or damage the users,such as falling or running. Other settings of the control system willallow the user or an operator, such as a clinic doctor, to balancebetween freedom of movement and preventive or rehabilitative movementcorrection.

Referring now to FIG. 1, therein is shown an perspective plan view of anexoskeleton system 100, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Some of the structures are shown to be transparent to betterillustrate components within the exoskeleton system 100.

The exoskeleton system 100 includes an exoskeleton device for gaitassistance. The exoskeleton system 100 can be worn by a human. Theexoskeleton system 100 can be a bilateral knee ankle hip orthoticsystem. The exoskeleton system 100 can also be a full-body exoskeletonsystem. The exoskeleton system 100 includes at least a skeleton jointsystem 102 (illustrated, for example, to include the structure of bothleg skeletons and their joints in FIG. 1). The exoskeleton system 100can include a textile 104, an actuation system 106, a pulley system 108,a sensor system 110, a control system 112, or any combination thereof.

For illustrative purposes, the skeleton joint system 102, the actuationsystem 106, the pulley system 108, the sensor system 110, and thecontrol system 112 are shown to be visible in the illustration. However,it is understood that these system may be covered by each other or othercomponents of the exoskeleton system 100 such as the textile 104.

The skeleton joint system 102 is defined as a mechanical supportstructure external to a body, such as a human body. The skeleton jointsystem 102 includes joints 114. Each of the joints 114 is a location atwhich two or more segments of the skeleton joint system 102 make contactand rotate or slide in relation to one another. For example, the joints114 can be hinges, pivots, bearings, slides, or any combination thereof.

The exoskeleton system 100 can include the textile 104 for assisting aperson to wear the exoskeleton system 100. The textile 104 is defined asa material, which may be flexible, around the skeleton joint system 102.For example, the textile 104 can be a woven material, such as cloth. Foranother example, the textile 104 can be leather, nylon, spandex,polyester, carbon fiber, plastic, or any combination thereof. Thetextile 104 can be attached to the skeleton joint system 102 with nails,glue, pins, clamps, hook and loop, bonding, encasement, other means ofattachment, or any combination thereof.

The exoskeleton system 100 can include the actuation system 106 foractuating the skeleton joint system 102. The actuation system 106 isdefined as a motor control system. The actuation system 106 can includeone or more of an actuator 116 (within the actuation system 106 andshown as dotted lines). The actuator 116 is defined as a type of motorfor moving or controlling a mechanism or system. The actuation system106 can be powered by a battery, a green energy source, an electricsource, a hydraulic or pneumatic pressure system, or any combinationthereof.

The exoskeleton system 100 can include the pulley system 108 tofacilitate movements of the joints 114 on the skeleton joint system 102.The pulley system 108 is defined as a system that uses one or morepulleys to lift or move a load through the use of one or more of a cable118 to transmit tension force around the one or more pulleys. The pulleysystem 108 can be detachable from the actuation system 106 or beintegrated with the actuation system 106. The pulley system 108 caninclude at least a pulley 120. The pulley system 108 can be coupled to acable system 122. The pulley system 108 can be modularly detachable fromthe cable system 122 or be integrated with the cable system 122.

The cable system 122 includes at least the cable 118. The cable 118 isdefined as a single continuous flexible object. For example, the cable118 can be a rope, a wire, a nylon line, a leather belt, a chain, otherflexible continuous object, or any combination thereof. The pulley 120is defined as a wheel on an axle that is designed to support movement ofa cable or belt along its circumference. For example, the pulley 120 canbe made of wood, metal, plastic, ceramic, alloy, or any combinationthereof.

The sensor system 110 is a system for providing feedback informationabout the user of the exoskeleton system 100, the environment, theexoskeleton system 100, or any combination thereof. The feedbackinformation can be displayed via a user interface to an operator or canbe used as part of gait assistance and correction mechanism calculatedby the exoskeleton system 100. The sensor system 110 can include sensors124. The sensors 124 can be embedded within the joints 114, the textile104, or a combination thereof to provide feedback to the control system112. Each of the sensors 124 is an electronic device that measures aphysical quantity and converts it into a signal which can be read by anobserver or instrument. For example, the physical quality can includemechanical, electrical, or biological qualities. The exoskeleton system100 can have the sensors 124 within the joints 114 for determination ofjoint angle. The exoskeleton system 100 can also have the sensors 124for detecting pressure within the textile 104 to determine tension forforce application to the user of the system for the purpose of comfort.The sensors 124 can also determine biomechanical feedback informationfor the control system 112. The sensors 124 can include accelerometers,force sensitive resistors, potentiometers, inertial measurement units,gyrometers, biological sensors, other electronic sensors of force,movement, weight, acceleration, direction, location, angle, or muscleactivation, or any combination thereof. The sensors 124 can determineacceleration and relative rotation of the limb during gait or otherexercises.

The exoskeleton system 100 can include the control system 112 for gaitassistance and rehabilitation of patients. The control system 112 canreside in a backpack with the actuation system 106 or in a differentpack with the pulley system 108 or altogether separate from both theactuation system 106 or the pulley system 108. For illustrationpurposes, the control system 112 is shown to reside together with thepulley system 108. The control system 112 is for determining when andhow the actuation system 106 is activated and powered. The controlsystem 112 can determine how much power to supply to the actuationsystem 106, when to supply the power, frequency and pattern of thepower, or any combination thereof. The control system 112 can includeone or more processors and memories to perform methods of gaitassistance. The control system 112 can determine when and how much topower each of the actuator 116 in the actuation system 106 to stabilize,support, or assist the wearer of the exoskeleton system 100. The controlsystem 112 can also analyze the movement of the wearer to correct forgait pattern or provide support with existing gait pattern. The controlsystem 112 can also analyze other biological measurements of the usersuch as heart rate, oxygenation, or others.

This embodiment uses the pulley system 108 to actuate the joints 114from a back station 126 located on the lower back. The exoskeletonsystem 100 includes the actuation system 106 that is removable. Thepulley system 108 is oriented flat on the back such that a drive shaft128 from the actuation system 106 can be engaged and disengaged. Dottedlines are shown to illustrate how the drive shaft 128 can fit into thepulley system 108. In this manner, the actuation system 106 can bemodularly attached or detached.

The exoskeleton system 100 is designed as both a passive recovery deviceand an active recovery device. It has been discovered that anexoskeleton that can act as both a passive recovery device and an activerecovery device has many business advantages, including upgradeability.The passive recovery device can have mechanical joint locking andsupport structures that can stabilize the wearer of the exoskeletonsystem 100 and limit body tissue damaging movements.

An upgradeable device such as the exoskeleton system 100 allows the userto upgrade the exoskeleton from a passive device to an active deviceeasily by engaging or disengaging the back station 126 or the actuationsystem 106. The modularity allows for different opportunities, includingcreating new business methods not previously available.

The exoskeleton system 100 is also designed to be modularlycustomizable. Without the actuation system 106, the rest of theexoskeleton system 100 can be individually customized for a patient or awearer of the exoskeleton system 100.

Referring now to FIG. 2, therein is shown an example illustration of anactuation system 200. The actuation system 200 is defined as a motorcontrol system. For example, the actuation system 200 can be theactuation system 106 of FIG. 1.

The current embodiment of the actuation system 200 can have drive trainsystems 202 with individual motors 204 arranged on a centralcircumference. The individual motors 204 and the drive train systems 202are designed for controlling each joint or segment of a robotics system.A main drive motor 208 is located on a main drive train 210 which powersa main worm gear 212 and a central gear 214. The central gear 214 or themain worm gear 212 can then couple into the drive train systems 202 ofeach joint. The individual motors 204 are arranged in a manner whichturns individual worm gears 216. The individual worm gears 216 can beconnected via a clutch system 218 which allows a shared main drive motorsystem by the main drive motor 208 to assist or independently actuateone or more of pulley drive shafts 220. The clutch system 218 can be adual clutch system.

The current embodiment of the clutch system 218 can use servo actuatedpawls to engage and disengage either of the drive trains such that adrive shaft of the actuation system 200 is connected to the main drivemotor 208, the individual motors 204, both the main drive motor 208 andthe individual motors 204, or neither. For example, the drive shaft canbe the drive shaft 128 of FIG. 1. When the clutches are fullydisengaged, the exoskeleton is in free swing. The clutch system 218 caninclude pawl clutches. The clutch system 218 can be directional and canbe selectively engaged in either the clockwise or counterclockwisedirection. When both are engaged, the actuation system 200 has positivecontrol over the exoskeleton to control both extension and flexion ofthe specific joint and act as a stance control system.

The benefits of this embodiment allow fully independent operation of thejoints 114 using the individual motors 204 or using the added assistanceor independent operation of the main drive motor 208 to drive the joints114. The benefits of using a pawl based clutch system include that thesystem can selectively be used to assist and allow the user to outrunthe assistance without interfering with patient intent. The pawl systemcan additionally be used to positively control the leg in bothdirections by engaging both counter clockwise and clockwise pawlsystems. The benefits of using the worm gear system as a gear reductionsolution are beneficial as most worm gears have a non-backdrivingfeature. This allows the use of the device as a stance control bracewithout wasting energy or driving motors simply by having both counterclockwise and clockwise pawl systems engaged and leaving the motorsstopped.

Other embodiments of the invention use alternate gearing elements in thedrivetrain to change the gearing such as planetary gear, sun gear,combination spur gear, other types of worm gear, other simplecombinations of gears to manipulate toque of the motors to theprescribed level, or any combination thereof. Other embodiments couldimplement alternate one way clutch designs such as friction clutches, orselective needle bearing clutches.

Referring now to FIG. 3, therein is shown an example illustration of apulley system 300. The pulley system 300 is a system that uses one ormore pulleys to lift or move a load through the use of one or morecables to transmit tension force around the one or more pulleys. Forexample, the pulley system 300 can be the pulley system 108 of FIG. 1.

The pulley system 300 can be actuated by an actuation system, such asthe actuation system 106 of FIG. 1 or the actuation system 200 of FIG.2. The pulley drive shafts 220 can connect to or disconnect from pulleyshafts 302 to allow the motor system to turn pulleys 304 to actuate acable system 306.

Referring now to FIG. 4, therein is shown an example illustration of aclutch system 400. FIG. 4 includes three different illustrations of theclutch system 400. FIG. 4A illustrates a clutch control portion of theclutch system 400. Particularly, FIG. 4A illustrates how one or more ofservos 402 can engage or disengage a clutch portion of the clutch system400. FIG. 4B illustrates a perspective top view of the clutch portion ofthe clutch system 400. FIG. 4C illustrates a side view of the clutchportion of the clutch system 400.

A clutch system 400 can employ a method of actuation which is driven bythe servos 402. The servos 402 can actuate a platform, such as rampedrings 404, around a base which move vertically to control swing arms,such as a clutch keys 406, which either allow pawls 408 to engage, orclose a pawl engagement opening 410 to disengage a clutch 412. The pawls408 are attached to the rest of the actuation system or pulley system(not shown). The clutch keys 406 are defined as mechanical arm-likestructures for triggering the pawls 408 to spring out or retract. Inanother embodiment, the servos 402 can actuate a pulley cable whichmoves the platform up and down to control the extension and retractionof the clutch keys 406.

The clutch system 400 can be a non contact pawl clutch system withbi-stable spring mechanism. The clutch system 400 can included a systemof activation by the use of bi-stable spring systems. A bi-stable springsystem has two low energy points which are stable positions. The clutchsystem 400 can allow the pawls 408 of the clutch 412 to stay disengagedfrom internal gears without incurring friction when the clutch system400 is rotating in either direction. This leads to higher efficiencyrotation without incurring drag. The clutch system 400 can use anactuation system which pushes or pulls the pawls 408 from one state tothe other. When a first set of the pawls 408 are engaged, the pawls 408ratchet in one direction and provide force in the other. A second set ofthe pawls 408 is independently actuated and provides force in theopposite direction to the first set of pawls. Kickers 416 are actuatedby the clutch keys 406 to open or close some or all of the pawlengagement opening 410. The pawls 408 are spring-loaded to engage intothe pawl engagement opening 410. When the pawl engagement opening 410 isclosed by the kickers 416, the kickers 416 would prevent one or more ofthe pawls 408 from engaging with the clutch 412.

The use of the clutch keys 406, such as ramped linear pins, can turn theclutch 412 on or off depending on which state each of the clutch keys406 is in. The ratcheting pawl clutches are turned on and off by theclutch keys 406, which are actuated in an axis parallel to the axis ofthe rotation of a pawl clutch 418. The clutch keys 406 can rotate withthe axle body and pawl pockets 420. The clutch keys 406 can be actuatedby the servos 402 which lift and lower a platform, such as the rampedrings 404. For example, the platform can be actuated by a cable coupledto the servos 402. The clutch keys 406 can rotate freely with the axleduring the operation of the servos 402. The pawls 408 and outerstructure of the clutch 412 are rotated directly by a worm wheel orindirectly by chain, belt, or cable system.

In one embodiment, the clutch system 400 can be integrated directly intothe joints of the exoskeleton—a dual directional ratcheting clutchmechanism designed into each joint. The advantages of this systeminclude reduced friction in free-swing modes and reduced compliance offorce application to the joint. The exoskeleton system becomesessentially a stance control brace without active force application, butwith controlled free swing in both directions and the ability to fullylock in a given position.

Referring now to FIG. 5, therein is shown an example of a systemhardware diagram of a control system 500. The control system 500 is fordetermining when or how an actuation system is activated and powered.The control system 500 can determine how much power to supply to theactuation system, when to supply the power, frequency and pattern of thepower, or any combination thereof. For example, the control system 500can be the control system 112 of FIG. 1.

The control system 500 can include one or more methods of controllingmotors in an actuation system, such as the actuation system 106 ofFIG. 1. The one or more methods can be implemented by components,storages, and modules described below. The components and modules can beimplemented as hardware modules, software modules, or any combinationthereof. For example, the modules described can be software modulesimplemented as instructions on a non-transitory memory capable of beingexecuted by a processor or a controller on a machine.

The control system 500 can include additional, fewer, or differentmodules for various applications. Conventional components such asmemory, communication, interfaces, user interfaces, network interfaces,security functions, load balancers, failover servers, management andnetwork operations consoles, and the like are not shown so as to notobscure the details of the system.

The control system 500 can include an user interface 502 for makingadjustments with the control system 500. The user interface 502 is adevice or module capable of receiving user inputs. For example, the userinterface 502 can be a tablet, a personal computer, a laptop, a cellphone, an e-reader, a mouse, a keyboard, a touch-screen, a microphone,an application programming interface, a software interface, a camera, orany combination thereof.

The user interface 502 can communicate through a communication channel504 with a control center 506. For example, the communication channel504 can be an Ethernet or other wire-based network or a wireless NIC(WNIC) or wireless adapter for communicating with a wireless network,such as a WI-FI network. The communication channel 504 can be anysuitable network for any suitable communication interface. As an exampleand not by way of limitation, the communication channel 504 can be an adhoc network, a personal area network (PAN), a local area network (LAN),a wide area network (WAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), or one ormore portions of the Internet or a combination of two or more of these.One or more portions of one or more of these networks may be wired orwireless. As another example, the communication channel 504 can be awireless PAN (WPAN) (such as, for example, a BLUETOOTH WPAN), a WI-FInetwork, a WI-MAX network, a 3G or 4G network, a cellular telephonenetwork (such as, for example, a Global System for Mobile Communications(GSM) network).

In one embodiment, the communication channel 504 uses standardcommunications technologies and/or protocols. Thus, the communicationchannel 504 can include links using technologies such as Ethernet,802.11, worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), 3G, 4G,CDMA, digital subscriber line (DSL), etc. Similarly, the networkingprotocols used on the communication channel 504 can includemultiprotocol label switching (MPLS), the transmission controlprotocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), the User Datagram Protocol (UDP),the hypertext transport protocol (HTTP), the simple mail transferprotocol (SMTP), and the file transfer protocol (FTP). The dataexchanged over the communication channel 504 can be represented usingtechnologies and/or formats including the hypertext markup language(HTML) and the extensible markup language (XML). In addition, all orsome of links can be encrypted using conventional encryptiontechnologies such as secure sockets layer (SSL), transport layersecurity (TLS), and Internet Protocol security (IPsec).

The control center 506 is a computer processor, such as a centralprocessing unit (CPU). For example, the control center 506 can be amultiple input and/or multiple output computing device, such as theDelfino TMS320C28346 CPU.

The control center 506 can receive sensor information through controllerarea network (CAN) buses. For example, the control center 506 canreceive sensor information from a left-thigh sensor board 508 through aleft-thigh CAN 510, a left-shin sensor board 512 through a left-shin CAN514, a right-thigh sensor board 516 through a right-thigh CAN 518, and aright-shin sensor board 520 through a right-shin CAN 522. The CANs 510,514, 518, and 522 are controller area network buses. The left-thighsensor board 508, the right-thigh sensor board 516, the left-shin sensorboard 512, and the right-shin sensor board 520 are examples of a sensorboard. The sensor board is defined as a control device for processinginformation from sensors. Each of the sensor boards can be the sensorboard as described in FIG. 8. The sensor boards can convert the signalsreceived from each of sensors into analog or digital informationunderstandable by the control center 506. The sensor boards can alsonormalize the sensor signals before passing it on to the control center506.

The control center 506 can be in communication with a motor system 524through motor CANs 526. The control center 506 can send commands torequest particular operations of the motor systems 524 to supportpatients during therapy sessions. The motor system 524 can include oneor more of a motor controller 528, each of them in communication withthe control center 506 through one of the motor CANs 526. The motorcontroller 528 is a processing unit for controlling a motor. Forexample, the motor controller 528 can be a CPU, such as the PiccoloTMS320F28034.

The motor system 524 can also include a motor 530 and an encoder 532.The motor 530 can receive instructions directly from the motorcontroller 528, such as pattern and schedule of applying power to themotor 530. The motor controller 528 can also control the details ofmovement of the motor 530, such as acceleration, direction, velocity,temperature, or any combination thereof.

The motor 530 can provide information for the encoder 532. The encoder532 is defined as a transducer. The encoder 532 can sense a position oran orientation of the motor 530 for reference or active feedbackcontrol. The encoder 532 can detect positional or orientationinformation from the motor 530 back to the motor controller 528 toprovide the motor controller 528 with feedback information.

Referring now to FIG. 6, therein is shown an example of a block diagramof a main board 600. For example, the main board 600 can be part of thecontrol system 500 of FIG. 5. The main board 600 can include a controlCPU 602. For example, the control CPU 602 can be the control center 506of FIG. 5. The control CPU 602 can be connected to communication modulesvia different kind of buses. For example, the control CPU 602 can beconnected through a first module connection 604 to a wirelesscommunication module 606. The first module connection 604 can be, forexample, an universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter, a piece ofcomputer hardware that translates data between parallel and serialforms. The first module connection 604 can also be a scalable coherentinterface (SCI). The SCI can be a processor-memory-IO bus.

The wireless communication module 606 is defined as a communication portfor wirelessly communicating with a remote device. For example, thewireless communication module 606 can be a Bluetooth™ wireless protocolcommunication unit that can receive short range Bluetooth™ signals andconvert it to a signal understandable by the control CPU 602. Forexample, the remote device can be an user interface 608. The userinterface 608 is a user device for receiving and relaying user input.For example, the user interface 608 can be the user interface 502 ofFIG. 5.

The control CPU 602 can also communicate with other modules or processorunits through CAN buses 610. The CAN buses 610 can connect one or moreof CAN transceivers with the control CPU 602. The CAN transceivers aredevices comprising both a transmitter and a receiver which cancommunicate through the controller area network (CAN). For example, thecontrol CPU 602 can be connected through a motor transceiver 612 tomotor boards 614. For another example, the control CPU 602 can beconnected through a sensor transceiver 616 to sensor boards 618.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through a second module connection620 to a USB transceiver 622. The second module connection 620 can bethe same type of connection as the first module connection 604. Forexample, the second module connection 620 can be a SCI bus. The USBtransceiver 622 can be a universal serial bus (USB) port. The USBtransceiver 622 can be used to receive external information fromexternal devices, such as laptops, computers, media devices, tablets,smart phones, or any combination thereof. The USB transceiver 622 canalso be used to send information off to external devices, such asprinters, multi-functional peripherals, fax machines, external harddrives, or any combination thereof.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through a servo channel 624 toservos 626. The servo channel 624 is a wired channel to communicate withthe servos 626. For example, the servo channel 624 can include pulsewidth modulated signal channels through one or more cables. The servos626 are defined as automatic devices that can control mechanicalpositions through their movements. The servos 626 can use error-sensingnegative feedback to correct the performance of a physical mechanismdescribed in the present invention.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through a peripheral bus 628 to avariety of external devices. The peripheral bus 628 is defined as a busfor connecting with external devices. For example, the peripheral bus628 can be a Serial Peripheral Interface Bus (SPI bus).

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the peripheral bus 628 toan external memory 630. For example, the external memory 630 can be anexternal secured digital (SD) card, SD Flash, memory stick flash,compact flash card, or any combination thereof. For example, theexternal memory 630 can be for storing gait history, movement settings,sensor data, gait profile, or any combination thereof.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the peripheral bus 628 toan analog-to-digital converter 632. The analog-to-digital converter 632can be used by the control CPU 602 to convert sensor output analogsignals to digital signals. The control CPU 602 can also be connectedthrough the peripheral bus 628 to a speaker 634. The speaker 634 can beused by the control CPU 602 to generate warning messages to the user ofthe exoskeleton. The control CPU 602 can also generate auditory messagesregarding the operation of the exoskeleton via playback of recordedsound or via text to speech technology.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through a component bus 636 to avariety of components. The component bus 636 is defined as aninter-integrated circuit board bus. For example, the component bus 636can be a I2C bus.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the component bus 636 to aclock 638. The clock 638 is defined as a time-keeping component. Forexample, the clock 638 can be a real-time clock capable of synchronizingwith other systems.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the component bus 636 to anon-volatile memory 640. The non-volatile memory 640 is defined as anon-volatile memory component for storing data. For example, thenon-volatile memory 640 can be a non-volatile random access memory forstoring gait history, movement freedom settings, sensor data, gaitprofile, or any combination thereof.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the component bus 636 to atemperature sensor 642. The temperature sensor 642 is defined as asensor capable of measuring the degree of heat present in itsenvironment. For example, the temperature sensor 642 can be a MAX6635MSAsensor.

The control CPU 602 can be connected through the component bus 636 to agyroscope 644 and an accelerometer 646. The gyroscope 644 can maintain aspecific orientation. The gyroscope 644 can also measure the changes inorientation. The accelerometer 646 can measure the degree of change invelocity or speed. The control CPU 602 can use the position information,orientation information, and acceleration information to determine thestability of the exoskeleton or the user, predict the intended movementsof the user, whether the user is, for instance, sitting down, standing,walking, or crouching, or any combination thereof.

Referring now to FIG. 7, therein is shown an example of a block diagramof a motor board 700. For example, the motor board 700 can be part ofthe control system 500 of FIG. 5. The motor board 700 is a circuit forcontrolling motors of actuator systems in the present invention.

The motor board 700 can communicate with other components of theinvention via a controller network transceiver 702. The motor board 700can include a processor 704 coupled to the controller area networktransceiver 702. The processor 704 can receive an input message 706 viathe controller area network transceiver 702 from a mainboard or acontrol system, such as the main board 600 of FIG. 6 or the controlsystem 500 of FIG. 5. The processor 704 can send an output message 708to the mainboard and the control system as well, such as informationabout the operation of the motors.

The motor board 700 can include indicators 710. The indicators 710 aredefined as components for signaling to an operator the status of themotor board 700. For example, the indicators 710 can be colored ormonochrome light emitting diodes (LEDs), colored lights, beepers, or anycombination thereof.

The motor board 700 can include a motor driver 712. The motor driver 712is defined as a piece of hardware for controlling a motor, such as themotor 530 of FIG. 5. The motor board 700 can also include a voltagesensor 714 and a current sensor 716. The voltage sensor 714 can measurethe voltage applied to the motor and send it back to the processor 704.The current sensor 716 can measure the current drawn by the motor andsend it back to the processor 704. The signals from the voltage sensor714 and the current sensor 716 can be used as feedback to better controlthe speed and torque of the motors.

The motor board 700 can include a H bridge 718. The H bridge 718 isdefined as an electronic circuit that enables a voltage to be appliedacross a load in different directions. The H bridge 718 can be used toallow direct current (DC) motors to run forwards and backwards. Forexample, the H bridge 718 can be used to run a motor 720 forward andbackwards. The H bridge 718 can send a trapezoidal or a sinusoidalelectric signal function to the motor 720 to drive it to rotate.

The motor 720 can be coupled to an encoder 722. The motor 720 canprovide information for the encoder 722. The encoder 722 is defined as atransducer. For example, the encoder 722 can be the encoder 532 of FIG.5. The encoder 722 can sense a position or an orientation of the motor720 for reference or active feedback control. The encoder 722 can detectpositional or orientation information from the motor 720 back to theprocessor 704 to provide the processor 704 with feedback information.For example, the encoder 722 can provide motor speed and directionthrough an encoder interface 724, such as a Quadrature Encoder Interface(QEI). The encoder interface 724 can provide the interface toincremental encoders for obtaining mechanical position data. Quadratureencoders can detect position and speed of rotating motion systems. Theencoder 722 and the encoder interface 724 enable closed-loop control ofmotor control applications, such as Switched Reluctance (SR) and ACInduction Motor (ACIM).

Referring now to FIG. 8, therein is shown an example of a block diagramof a sensor board 800. For example, the sensor board 800 can be part ofthe control system 500 of FIG. 5. The sensor board 800 is a circuit forcontrolling one or more sensors in the present invention.

The sensor board 800 can include a processor 802. The processor 802 cancommunicate with other components of the invention via a controller areanetwork transceiver 804. For example, the controller area networktransceiver 804 can output analog or digitized outputs of the one ormore sensors connected to the sensor board 800. On board sensors can beconnected to the processor 802 via a component bus 806. The componentbus 806 is defined as an inter-integrated circuit board bus. Forexample, the component bus 806 can be an I2C bus.

The sensor board 800 can be connected to an accelerometer 808 via thecomponent bus 806. The sensor board 800 can be connected to a gyro 810via the component bus 806.

The sensor board 800 can be coupled to or include an analog-to-digitalconverter 812. Force sensors 814 can be connected to the processor 802via the analog-to-digital converter 812. The analog-to-digital converter812 can be an internal or external component of the sensor board 800,such as the analog-to-digital converter 632 of FIG. 6. The force sensors814 are defined as sensors capable of detecting pressure forces. Forexample, the force sensors 814 can include force sensitive resistors.FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a package of the force sensors 814. Theforce sensors 814 can be used to sense force applied on feet, back andfront thighs, back and front shins, or lower back of the user, or anycombination thereof. These data then be used to trigger operations tosupport patients during therapy sessions.

A potentiometer 816 can also be connected to the processor 802 via theanalog-to-digital converter 812. The same or different instance of theanalog-to-digital converter 812 can be used for the potentiometer 816and the force sensors 814. The potentiometer 816 is defined as acomponent that can act as an adjustable voltage divider. Thepotentiometer 816 can be used as a position sensor. The potentiometer816 can also be used to adjust the sensitivity of the sensors connectedto the processor 802. The potentiometers 816 can be used to sense hip,knee, and ankle angles. These angles can be used as feed-back data tocorrect and control operations in the control center 506 of FIG. 5.

The processor 802 can include a general purpose input/output (TO) 818.The general purpose TO 818 is defined as a generic pin on a chip such asthe processor 802, whose behavior (including whether it is an input oroutput pin) can be controlled or programmed through software. Theprocessor 802 can be programmed to output indication signal via lights820. For example, the lights 820 can be single color LEDs.

Referring now to FIG. 9, therein is shown an example illustration of asensor 900. For example, the sensor 900 can be a sensor in the sensorsystem 110 of FIG. 1 operated by the sensor board 800 of FIG. 8.

Sensors, such as the sensor 900, can be embedded in the textile bothunder and over the structural layer of the textile to determine forcesacting upon the patient. The system can use force sensitive sensorsplaced on the anterior and posterior of the patient limbs bothproximally and distally of the center point of each limb. The actuatorsystem can apply force to the exoskeleton system which is thentransferred to the patient body through the structural system andtextile. By placing the sensors strategically between the structuraltextile and the body, these forces are measured to allow the system todetermine how much force the system is placing on the body in order toallow the system to feed back into the control system. Additionally,sensors may be placed on the outside of the structural textile todetermine the force differential between the forces applied by theexoskeleton and the forces applied externally by objects such as a chairin which the patient is seated in.

The sensor 900 can include a sensor plate 902. The sensor plate 902 canbe a force sensitive resistor. For example, the sensor plate 902 can bemade from a material whose resistance changes when a force or pressureis applied. Such material can include a conductive polymer sheet or aconductive ink applied on a conductive plate.

One or more of the sensor plate 902 can be connected via a sensorconnector 904. The sensor connector 904 can be a cable, a wire, or otherconductive path for propagating signal from the sensor plate 902. Thesensor connector 904 can be bundled into a connection bundle 906. Theconnection bundle 906 can be a collection of the sensor connector 904with a standardized connection to connect with an analog-to-digitalconverter or a sensor board. The entire body of the sensor 900 can bewrapped in a sensor wrap 908 to insulate and protect the sensor plate902 and the sensor connector 904.

Referring now to FIG. 10, therein is shown an example illustration of anactuation system 1000 in accordance with a further embodiment of theinvention. The actuation system 1000 is defined as a motor controlsystem. For example, the actuation system 1000 can be the actuationsystem 106 of FIG. 1

In this embodiment, the actuation system 1000 uses a main drive motor1002 and a main drive train 1004 including a worm 1006 and a worm gear1008 to rotate a cam profile system 1010. The cam profile system 1010can actuate linear cam followers 1012 to directly actuate pulley systemscables to rotate joints. The cams are designed specifically to actuatethe knee angle and hip joints in the manner of a gait cycle and can betuned to operate from standard walking gait or to mimic the specificgait style of a particular performance runner. The linear cam followers1012 can be actuated by motors to vary the range of motion of the jointsto allow deviation from standard gait.

The benefit of this embodiment is that the motor is nominally driven ata fixed speed for a gait of a specific cadence and the limbs of the usercan be assisted in the designed gait of the particular cam profiles. Thecam profiles can be tuned to lengthen or shorten stride, hip actuation,knee flexion at launch or other particular gait biomechanics which aredeemed useful to improve gait. The device could be used both as a gaitteaching device for users affected with disabilities as well as ablebodied athletes simply desiring to learn or improve with a differentrunning style or biomechanics.

Referring now to FIG. 11, therein is shown a flow chart of a method 1100of operating an exoskeleton system, such as the exoskeleton system 100of FIG. 1, in a further embodiment of the present invention. The method1100 includes: receiving sensor information in a method step 1102;connecting a dual clutch system to a pulley system in a method step1104; determining whether to engage a drive train gear to the dualclutch system based on the sensor information in a method step 1106;engaging the drive train gear through the dual clutch system whendetermined to engage the drive train gear in a method step 1108; andpowering a first motor to drive the drive train gear for controlling ajoint or segment of exoskeleton device in a method step 1110.

CLARIFICATION

The above description and drawings are illustrative and are not to beconstrued as limiting the invention to the precise forms disclosed.Persons skilled in the relevant art can appreciate that manymodifications and variations are possible in light of the abovedisclosure. Numerous specific details are described to provide athorough understanding of the disclosure. However, in certain instances,well-known or conventional details are not described in order to avoidobscuring the description. References to one or an embodiment in thepresent disclosure can be, but not necessarily are, references to thesame embodiment; and such references mean at least one of theembodiments.

Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment”means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic describedin connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodimentof the disclosure. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” invarious places in the specification are not necessarily all referring tothe same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodimentsmutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, various features aredescribed which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others.Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirementsfor some embodiments but not other embodiments.

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout thedescription and the claims, the words “comprise,” “comprising,” and thelike are to be construed in an inclusive sense, as opposed to anexclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of“including, but not limited to.” As used herein, the terms “connected,”“coupled,” or any variant thereof, means any connection or coupling,either direct or indirect, between two or more elements; the coupling ofconnection between the elements can be physical, logical, or anycombination thereof. Additionally, the words “herein,” “above,” “below,”and words of similar import, when used in this application, shall referto this application as a whole and not to any particular portions ofthis application. Where the context permits, words in the above DetailedDescription using the singular or plural number may also include theplural or singular number respectively. The word “or,” in reference to alist of two or more items, covers all of the following interpretationsof the word: any of the items in the list, all of the items in the list,and any combination of the items in the list.

While processes or blocks are presented in a given order, alternativeembodiments may perform routines having steps, or employ systems havingblocks, in a different order, and some processes or blocks may bedeleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and/or modified to providealternative or subcombinations. Each of these processes or blocks may beimplemented in a variety of different ways. Also, while processes orblocks are at times shown as being performed in series, these processesor blocks may instead be performed in parallel, or may be performed atdifferent times. Further any specific numbers noted herein are onlyexamples: alternative implementations may employ differing values orranges.

The teachings of the disclosure provided herein can be applied to othersystems, not necessarily the system described above. The elements andacts of the various embodiments described above can be combined toprovide further embodiments.

Any patents and applications and other references noted above, includingany that may be listed in accompanying filing papers, are incorporatedherein by reference. Aspects of the disclosure can be modified, ifnecessary, to employ the systems, functions, and concepts of the variousreferences described above to provide yet further embodiments of thedisclosure.

These and other changes can be made to the disclosure in light of theabove Detailed Description. While the above description describescertain embodiments of the disclosure, and describes the best modecontemplated, no matter how detailed the above appears in text, theteachings can be practiced in many ways. Details of the system may varyconsiderably in its implementation details, while still beingencompassed by the subject matter disclosed herein. As noted above,particular terminology used when describing certain features or aspectsof the disclosure should not be taken to imply that the terminology isbeing redefined herein to be restricted to any specific characteristics,features, or aspects of the disclosure with which that terminology isassociated. In general, the terms used in the following claims shouldnot be construed to limit the disclosure to the specific embodimentsdisclosed in the specification, unless the above Detailed Descriptionsection explicitly defines such terms. Accordingly, the actual scope ofthe disclosure encompasses not only the disclosed embodiments, but alsoall equivalent ways of practicing or implementing the disclosure underthe claims.

While certain aspects of the disclosure are presented below in certainclaim forms, the inventors contemplate the various aspects of thedisclosure in any number of claim forms. For example, while only oneaspect of the disclosure is recited as a means-plus-function claim under35 U.S.C. §112, 916, other aspects may likewise be embodied as ameans-plus-function claim, or in other forms, such as being embodied ina computer-readable medium. (Any claims intended to be treated under 35U.S.C. §112, 916 will begin with the words “means for”.) Accordingly,the applicant reserves the right to add additional claims after filingthe application to pursue such additional claim forms for other aspectsof the disclosure.

The terms used in this specification generally have their ordinarymeanings in the art, within the context of the disclosure, and in thespecific context where each term is used. Certain terms that are used todescribe the disclosure are discussed above, or elsewhere in thespecification, to provide additional guidance to the practitionerregarding the description of the disclosure. For convenience, certainterms may be highlighted, for example using capitalization, italicsand/or quotation marks. The use of highlighting has no influence on thescope and meaning of a term; the scope and meaning of a term is thesame, in the same context, whether or not it is highlighted. It will beappreciated that same element can be described in more than one way.

Consequently, alternative language and synonyms may be used for any oneor more of the terms discussed herein, nor is any special significanceto be placed upon whether or not a term is elaborated or discussedherein. Synonyms for certain terms are provided. A recital of one ormore synonyms does not exclude the use of other synonyms. The use ofexamples anywhere in this specification including examples of any termsdiscussed herein is illustrative only, and is not intended to furtherlimit the scope and meaning of the disclosure or of any exemplifiedterm. Likewise, the disclosure is not limited to various embodimentsgiven in this specification.

Without intent to further limit the scope of the disclosure, examples ofinstruments, apparatus, methods and their related results according tothe embodiments of the present disclosure are given below. Note thattitles or subtitles may be used in the examples for convenience of areader, which in no way should limit the scope of the disclosure. Unlessotherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein havethe same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in theart to which this disclosure pertains. In the case of conflict, thepresent document, including definitions will control.

Some portions of this description describe the embodiments of theinvention in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations ofoperations on information. These algorithmic descriptions andrepresentations are commonly used by those skilled in the dataprocessing arts to convey the substance of their work effectively toothers skilled in the art. These operations, while describedfunctionally, computationally, or logically, are understood to beimplemented by computer programs or equivalent electrical circuits,microcode, or the like. Furthermore, it has also proven convenient attimes, to refer to these arrangements of operations as modules, withoutloss of generality. The described operations and their associatedmodules may be embodied in software, firmware, hardware, or anycombinations thereof.

Any of the steps, operations, or processes described herein may beperformed or implemented with one or more hardware or software modules,alone or in combination with other devices. In one embodiment, asoftware module is implemented with a computer program productcomprising a computer-readable medium containing computer program code,which can be executed by a computer processor for performing any or allof the steps, operations, or processes described.

Embodiments of the invention may also relate to an apparatus forperforming the operations herein. This apparatus may be speciallyconstructed for the required purposes, and/or it may comprise ageneral-purpose computing device selectively activated or reconfiguredby a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer programmay be stored in a non-transitory, tangible computer readable storagemedium, or any type of media suitable for storing electronicinstructions, which may be coupled to a computer system bus.Furthermore, any computing systems referred to in the specification mayinclude a single processor or may be architectures employing multipleprocessor designs for increased computing capability.

Embodiments of the invention may also relate to a product that isproduced by a computing process described herein. Such a product maycomprise information resulting from a computing process, where theinformation is stored on a non-transitory, tangible computer readablestorage medium and may include any embodiment of a computer programproduct or other data combination described herein.

Finally, the language used in the specification has been principallyselected for readability and instructional purposes, and it may not havebeen selected to delineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter.It is therefore intended that the scope of the invention be limited notby this detailed description, but rather by any claims that issue on anapplication based hereon. Accordingly, the disclosure of the embodimentsof the invention is intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, ofthe scope of the invention, which is set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of operating an exoskeleton deviceconfigured for gait assistance, the method comprising: connecting abilateral structural frame that includes multiple joints to a pulleysystem using multiple cables; attaching the pulley system to a driveshaft that is connected to an actuation system, wherein the actuationsystem includes individual motors that are each responsible forcontrolling one of the multiple joints, and wherein the individualmotors are arranged such that a main drive motor can independentlyactuate a pulley drive shaft corresponding to a particular individualmotor and a particular joint; receiving feedback information fromsensors that are embedded within the multiple joints of the bilateralstructural frame and within a flexible textile that at least partiallyenvelops the bilateral structural frame; based on the feedbackinformation, selectively engaging, by the actuation system, theparticular individual motor to actuate the pulley drive shaft, whereinengagement of the pulley drive shaft causes a tension to be applied to aparticular cable connected to the particular joint of the bilateralstructural frame, and wherein the tension causes extension or flexion ofthe particular joint of the bilateral structural frame to be modified.2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensors include accelerometers,force-sensitive resistors, potentiometers, inertial measurement units,gyroscopes, biological sensors, or a combination thereof.
 3. The methodof claim 1, wherein the drive shaft and the actuation system aremodularly attachable to the pulley system.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the particular joint of the bilateral structural frame issubstantially immovable prior to the tension being applied to theparticular cable.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein each of theindividual motors are connected to the actuation system via a clutchsystem.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the clutch system usesservo-actuated pawls to independently engage and disengage pulley driveshafts connected to the individual motors.
 7. A method of operating anexoskeleton device, the method comprising: connecting a structural framethat includes multiple joints to a pulley system using multiple cables,wherein the structural frame includes sensors that are embedded withinthe multiple joints or within a flexible textile that at least partiallyenvelops the structural frame; attaching the pulley system to a driveshaft that is connected to an actuation system, wherein the actuationsystem includes individual drive train systems that are responsible forcontrolling the multiple joints, and wherein the individual drive trainsystems are arranged such that a main drive train can independentlyactuate pulley drive shafts corresponding to particular joints of thestructural frame; continually receiving feedback information from thesensors; determining, by a control system, whether to engage anindividual drive train system by the actuation system based on thefeedback information; in response to determining the individual drivetrain system should be engaged, actuating a particular joint of thestructural frame by supplying power to a main drive motor that isconnected to the main drive train, causing the main drive train toselectively engage the individual drive train system, causing a clutchsystem to engage the pulley drive shaft corresponding to the individualdrive train system, and causing the pulley drive shaft to apply atension to a particular cable corresponding to the particular joint ofthe structural frame.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the main drivemotor is powered by a battery, a green energy source, an electricsource, a hydraulic or pneumatic pressure system, or a combinationthereof.
 9. The method of claim 7, wherein an amount of power suppliedto the main drive motor is based on the feedback information receivedfrom the sensors.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein the clutch systemuses servo-actuated pawls to independently engage and disengage thepulley drive shaft of each individual drive train system.
 11. The methodof claim 7, wherein the clutch system is a dual-clutch system.
 12. Themethod of claim 7, wherein the individual drive train system includesworm gears that have a non-backdriving feature.